Leaves of Sand
by Taisi
Summary: When Naruto sustains a blow to the head, and wakes up in Suna with amnesia- he doesn't remember a thing about Konoha.
1. Prologue

**Okay, I got this idea when I was at a hell-hole called Camp Gallahue. It's going to be really funny and very kawaii!**

_Leaves of Sand_

_-_

_Prologue_

All the posters pasted on the walls went ignored. The verbal search went just as unrewarded. No matter how much time they devoted to finding him, they couldn't.All of Konoha's finest young ninja, the pride of the village, stressed and worried constantly for someone the villagers despised. They were--although half wouldn't admit it--scared for him. He was a constant in their lives, and even though some of them would like to think they hated him, his not-presence was taking a toll. They woke up each day with an almost-desperate desire to find him, to take the shunned, abused child back under their wing; to have him nearby, close enough to reach out and protect. He was just a child, the youngest of the Genin. Everyone seemed to forget that.

He didn't come back. Usually he kept bouncing back no matter what--he'd spring back no matter how hard a letdown he'd recieved. But he didn't show up; that was another major contribution to their concern: what could have happened to take him from his beloved Konoha?

Even the Hokage worried for him. As the weeks passed, and then months, the average villager stopped harboring any hope that the loud Leaf nin would return--not that many cared. But his comrades and friends never lost that somewhat-faith; somewhere, he was alive.

Somewhere.

The Hokage's thoughts strayed as she sat idley at the conference table. All the Kages were there with an assistant each. It was a standard meeting between the countries. Shizune stood at Tsunade's side, TonTon in her arms.

"Stop worrying, Tsunade-sama," she offered. "He always turns up sooner or later."

Tsunade sighed, having been caught worrying. "But he's alone out there, and in his condition..."

Before his dissapearance, the blonde Genin had been carried back to Konoha by Kakashi and Sakura, limp in Kakashi's careful hold. Shikamaru and Kiba had pressed forward first, demanding to know how it had happened; Naruto's head lolling back like that, his face so expressionless and still, was unnerving for anyone who knew him. When they'd been told it was just a minor concussion, they immediately took charge, carrying Naruto between the two of them to the nearest lodgings--Shino's house. The Genin of Konoha had pretty much barged into the estate, and Shino had watch impassively the goings-on, making no move to intercept their crude entry; if anything, he'd been more expecting it, having gathering information moments before their arrival via bug. Everyone stayed loyally by the blonde boy's side all day--and then he was spirited away sometime during the night, when everyone had finally dosed off, somehow managing to get past Iruka, Gai, Kakashi, Asuma and Kurenai with ease.

"He's been alone for most of his life," Shizune said gently.

Tsunade made a face at her, but said nothing; at that moment, the Kazekage showed up. The redheaded boy, no older than the "future Hokage", walked slowly to the table, seating himself in his designated chair; he was the only one not wearing his Kage hat, choosing to hold it instead on his lap.

"Where's your second?" Tsunade finally asked after a brief silence. She blinked when his strange blue eyes met hers; what threw her was the hint of laughter in the usually lifeless orbs. To answer her question, he raised a hand--slowly, deliberately--and pointed with his thumb over his shoulder.

"Oy, Gaara! Wait up!"

Tsunade froze at the voice; her head snapped up--that very familiar blonde Genin was racing towards them. Without breaking his sprint, he tackled the Kazekage, who sat unfazed, to wrestle that hat away from him, unnecessarily because Gaara gave it to him willingly, and then Naruto plopped himself into the assistant chair. A cat-like smile curled onto his face as he fidgeted with the hat. His eyes were shining, glowing a liquid blue, not the flashing, hard eyes she'd come to expect from him. Tsunade watched, mouth agape, as he turned to scowl at Gaara. "You _could've _waited."

"Hn."

"Naruto!"

Naruto's head snapped up, and he glanced around with some confusion. Then his wandering gaze found Tsunade and he blinked in confusion.

"Do I know you?"

**Ooooooohhh...Cliffy! Please review, and please don't flame!**


	2. Chapter 1

**Thank you for the reviews! I'm so glad you're enjoying this fic! I have a vague idea of where I'm going with it, so I'll have to ask you to be patient. Chapter one, comin' up! Enjoy.**

**Note: I apologize for any OOCness this chapter may suffer!! Please don't flame, and please keep reading despite its imperfections!!**

_Chapter One_

_-_

_Memories_

"Naruto…"

Tsunade's eyes widened, but her brow went down, in a kind of wide-eyed glare at the blonde haired youth. He was watching her in confusion, blinking cutely when she said nothing else.

"Umm…How do you know my name, Hokage-sama?" he asked politely, despite his obviously growing apprehension. He'd respectfully risen from his chair in face of a superior, even if it wasn't the one he served. ((Or thought he served…))

"Stop fooling, Naruto!" she shouted, hitting the table with her fisted hand hard enough to make it crack. Naruto flinched back, eyes widening a fraction of an inch.

"I don't…know what you're talking about…" he said with a trace of fear, stepping behind Gaara a bit. He looked genuinely confused, and a little afraid, but it was all lost on Tsunade, who apparently was convinced it was a new prank to get more attention.

Tsunade scowled, but Shizune laid a hand on her arm. "Stop it, Tsunade-sama," she said quietly. "You're scaring him." Tsunade looked at her, then returned her gaze to the nervous Naruto.

"Was it a good idea for me to be your assistant, Gaara?" he muttered. "I told you they wouldn't like it."

"Quiet," Gaara told him, voice gentle despite the authority behind it; the Kyuubi no gaki silenced immediately. Gaara turned his gaze back on Tsunade, and any warmth in his eyes was gone. "Stop frightening my assistant, Hokage."

None of them remembered the other Kages were there. Said Kages quickly started up conversations of their own, and resolved to draw them out for as long as Tsunade's took.

"_Your _assistant?" she said sharply. "He's a Konoha nin, therefore my subject."

Now Naruto spoke: "I am _not _your subject!" he shouted angrily. "I don't belong to anyone!" He glared at her, still behind the Kazekage. "And I am not your ninja! I'm loyal to Gaara, and to the village hidden in the sand! No one else!"

Shock worked through the leader of the Leaf Village slowly, numbing her from head to foot. "Naruto…. You're serious, aren't you?" she said softly after a moment.

"Of course…. Of course I am," he said, still angry but a little put-off by the look on the woman's face. "I've never even been to Konoha."

--

She watched him run to meet Kankuro and Temari after the meeting was adjourned, who'd come to escort the Kazekage and his second home. She watched Temari kneel to his level and smile at him as he excitedly informed the elder Sand Siblings of his first day as the Kazekage's assistant; she watched Kankuro drop a hand onto his head and ruffle his blonde spikes affectionately, before turning and waving Gaara over. She caught the glare sent her way by Gaara—who was apparently still angry with her for upsetting Naruto—before he joined his family, and the four left with their escort for Suna.

"Shizune…"

"Yes, Tsunade-sama?"

"…I think…" Tsunade shut her eyes tightly, gritting her teeth. "…I think we might have a problem."

--

"What?!"

All of the Genins of Konoha immediately pressed in closer, all shouting questions and demanding answers. Tsunade glared at them all for a moment, before roaring, "QUIET!"

Instant silence, though inquiries burned in the eyes of her young ninja; Tsunade sighed and sat back in her chair. "I called you all here to inform you all of where Naruto was…and also to tell you that he doesn't remember anything of his life here at Konoha."

It took a moment for the junior ninja to digest that. "What you're saying is," Shikamaru said, frowning as he met the eyes of his leader, "that Naruto can't remember…any of us?"

"No. He doesn't believe he's ever even been to this Hidden Village," she said quietly, watching the eleven kids before her and their senseis, gauging their reactions.

"Then…then we've got to help him remember!" Sakura shouted, clenching her fists and tucking them under her chin.

"Yes!" Lee agreed at once, fiery and determined. "We cannot let Naruto-kun down!"

"But," Neji said quietly, arms crossed, eyes down, "what if he doesn't want to remember?"

"What are you talking about?" Kiba snapped, patience drawing thin. "Why wouldn't he want to remember us?"

Now Kakashi spoke, voice quiet and emotionless. "Well, think about it: the villagers despise him and give him a hard time, no one respects him and he's unappreciated, and his greatest dream in life is scorned by everyone around him." Kakashi's visible eye closed, and had his face not been two-thirds covered the room would have seen his pained expression. "We had it coming. We took him for granted, and now he's been taken from us. From what Tsunade is telling us, Naruto's got a pretty good life over there; accepted, treasured, admired.

"Should we be so selfish as to drag him back to the place that stripped him of any chance at happiness or hope?"

There was a very long moment of silence. For some, that had been the most Kakashi had said to them, but they were mulling over the meaning of his words. It was true, what he said; the village did loathe Naruto, and were always looking down upon him as someone to deride. But…

"K…Kakashi-san…" Everyone glanced up as Hinata's quiet voice broke the heavy silence. "I…I underst-stand what you're saying…." Her lavender eyes were large and fearful. "But the village n-needs Naruto…! And…And I couldn't imagine ever having to fight against him as enemy shinobi…." She shut her eyes tightly, holding her hands up to her chin. "I can never turn my back on Naruto and forget he was once my friend!"

"That's right!" Kiba shouted. "Naruto never forgets any of us, so we have to do the same!"

"He's one of us," Ino said passionately, "and we all stick together."

"Kakashi-sensei, he's our comrade," Sakura said beseechingly. "We aren't Team Seven without him, or even the Rookie Nine! Konoha's not complete without Naruto!"

"He's a dobe."

Everyone glanced now at Sasuke, who was impassively watching the proceedings.

"He's loud, argumentative, annoying, and he never seems to hear what anyone's telling him."

No one said anything, but for a few of them their eyes were tightening into glares at the Uchiha.

"He ignores orders and goes by his own nindo, no matter what the consequences."

Sasuke had everyone's full attention; finally, now, he looked up. Obsidian flashed dangerously as the light balance shifted in the office.

Now Sakura spoke, voice burning with indignation. "No matter what trouble it got him into, he followed what he knew was the right thing to do. It would be entirely selfish of us to drag him back to Leaf, yes." Sakura's eyes were hard on Kakashi. "But could we really just leave him? How long would it take one of us to finally give up life without him and go gallivanting off to bring him back home?"

Shikamaru broke the revelational silence with a loud, exaggerated sigh. "How troublesome. Let's just go get him so I can go back to bed."

--

It was pouring down rain, and the travelers had stopped for the night to set up camp; more so, to settle down under some trees with thick foliage to recline in and overhanging leaves and branches to block the most of the rain.

All but one of them sat just outside the reach of the downward river.

The blonde-haired Suna-nin danced joyously in the natural shower the sky provided, carelessly twirling about; and suddenly he stopped, smile sliding off his face, light blue eyes becoming troubled. "…Gaara?" he asked suddenly, not having to raise his voice.

"What?" the Kazekage replied, voice gentling for the ex-dobe of Konoha the way it did for no one else.

"That lady…the Hokage…." He frowned. "She…knew my name, but I was sure we'd never met before….And…I can't get these people out of my head…." He rubbed at his eyes. "They seem so familiar…but I know I've never seen them….They're smiling at me, and we're laughing together…at a place with lots of trees."

Gaara said nothing, only watched the Genin with a blank expression. Temari and Kankuro looked rather guiltily at one another, and then averted their gazes.

"I don't know why…but they make me hurt, here," Naruto continued, fisting a hand on his shirt over his heart. "Like…a part of me is with them. Ugh, it sounds so stupid." He sighed, and upturned his face to meet the rain.

"I just wish I knew who they were."

**Short, and OOC. I'm sorry! I wanted to portray Naruto's innocence…and he always talks straight from the heart….And the Genins reactions were poorly depicted as well…!! Please don't flame! **


	3. Chapter 2

**Ahh, finally an update. Been a while, ne? I'm actually working on about four stories as we speak…I almost confused two of them with one another…if I hadn't happened to glance at the text, it would've ended pretty badly…. Yeah….**

**Disclaimer: She owns no one. Well….Except Yukito and them. XDD Other than **_**that….**_

_Chapter Two_

_-_

_Arrivals in Suna_

He turned mistrustful eyes on them; "Why are you here?"

Konoha had—largely decided upon by its Hokage—dispatched several of its Genin on a retrieval mission to Suna. Since _every single one of them wanted to go, _one from each team was chosen; Sasuke, Shikamaru, Neji and Kiba were the ones selected by their comrades. But the council—loathe to bring the demon child back into the village—protested, saying that at least one female had to accompany them, or they would not allow the mission; wrongly guessing that no kunoichi (sp) cared enough to follow.

Two of them had volunteered with vigor. When Hinata saw that Sakura was willing to go, she blushed a bright crimson, and had hurriedly said, "G-Gomen, Sakura-san, of course you can go—he's your teammate." But as worried as Sakura was for her comrade, she knew why Hinata was blushing so brilliantly, and stepped back with a smile.

"No, Hinata," she'd said, giving her a smile. "You go. Just…just bring him back safe, okay?"

So there they were, the five Konoha nin, standing before the Kazekage in Suna. Behind Gaara stood his elder siblings, one on each side. Temari's eyes met the floor emotionlessly, while Kankuro's mirrored the expression in Gaara's, of suspicion and slight anger.

"We're here for Naruto," Sasuke said quietly, meeting the Jinchuuriki's gaze squarely with his own. "And we're not leaving without him." Behind him, Kiba smirked and Akamaru yipped and agreement, while Shikamaru crossed his arms and Neji closed his eyes in concurrence.

Gaara said nothing; the silence between the ninja of Suna and Konoha stretched until it seemed no compromise would be met. _That's fine, _Sasuke found himself thinking. _We'll just beat the shit out of all these damn Sand nin and take Naruto back to Konoha with us anyway. He's…_Naruto_. He _belongs _to us—with us. _

Hinata fidgeted slightly, before saying softly, "Kazekage-sama….Can we see him? Please? We just really want him to remember…and we're all so worried about him…." The other nin in the office turned to look at her; she blushed again and averted her gaze immediately. "G-Gom—" she began, only to be cut off by Gaara when he stood.

"This way," he said, and without another word, exited the office, leaving his siblings and the Konoha shinobi to follow him.

--

He led them to a courtyard where several junior nin seemed to be training; but, even as the shinobi watched, they one by one dropped from their fighting to join the growing crowd grouped around one training quarter in particular.

Sasuke frowned, waiting for the telltale flash of orange to join the throng, when he felt Kiba tense next to him. Looking at him sidelong, Kiba gestured at his ear, mouthing, 'listen'; the crowd was chanting.

Pushing their way through the crowd, the Konoha nin found two young boys sparring, oblivious to the crowd around them; one was a brunette boy with a long ponytail, bangs long on either side of his face, and chocolate brown eyes. His face was flushed with adrenaline, and he was panting, kunai raised in front of him as he tried desperately to ward of his opponent's attacks; it was his opponent that drew the Leaf shinobi's eyes.

He was grinning widely, kunai in each hand, striking out with a smooth ease in a very instinctive manner. His eyes were unworried, and he dodged each of the brunette's defensive thrusts with a careless grace, parrying each without a glance. He wore the familiar eye-smarting, signature orange, the jacket tied around his waist; atop the black fabric of his shirt rested the necklace given to him by the Hokage. His blue eyes shone in the glare of the hot sun, occasionally covered by a stray lock of clean blonde hair—and he'd never looked happier.

This was who the other children were cheering for; _"Na-ru-to! Na-ru-to!"_

And it wasn't only his physical features that gave his identity away. His Konoha friends could tell immediately who he was, just by studying him, only for a moment: his feverishly excited eyes, how he moved so quickly and seemed to never run out of breath; the way one could tell with a single glance at his expression that he was still planning, still had _one _more trick up his sleeve; just the aura he gave off, his boundless enthusiasm, foundless freedom, and dangerous, wild determination.

In one swift jerk of his right arm in the same direction, he managed to hook the brunette's kunai away from him, at the same time knocking him back; the ninja dagger flew into the air, flipping slowly all the way, and came back down in a graceful arc. Naruto reached up and snatched it from the air, smiling wider.

"I won!" he cheered. "Thanks for sparring, Yukito!"

Instead of doing the expected sulk, the brown-haired boy smiled back brightly, and held a hand up from where he sat on the dusty ground; Naruto gripped it and pulled him to his feet. Instantly the two were swarmed;

"_That was amazing, Naruto!"_

"You were so great!"

"Will you come watch us train, Naruto?"

"Ha, ha, Yukito—he beat you so hard!"

"Naruto—hey, Naruto!"

And Naruto was laughing modestly, almost shyly, a faint blush spreading out over his cheeks. Yukito made sure to announce that, throwing an arm around Naruto's shoulders, and all the girls giggled while the boys playfully gave the blonde Genin a hard time about it. This made Naruto blush harder, and yet instead of falling down into himself and closing up, he simply spun on Yukito and told him to shut the hell up or else.

"Naruto…"

That quiet voice cut through the crowd's din like a blade through rice paper. Naruto froze, and turned quickly to its source. Hinata stood there, hands covering her mouth as she stared wide-eyed at the whisker-scarred boy. Yukito felt him shaking and blinked. "Naruto?"

"Who…" Naruto frowned, eyes still confused. His eyes fell on Shikamaru, Kiba, Sasuke and Neji. "Who….Who are you?" He didn't notice the pain that flitted for a fleeting instant across their faces. None of them were sure where to go with this. Kiba opened his mouth, and then clamped it shut again, Akamaru whining from his perch on Kiba's head, sensing his master's distress; Sasuke's glare was trembling, with anger and indignance—he wasn't sure who it was directed at; Hinata looked on the verge of tears, while Neji quickly averted his own pale eyes to the ground.

It was Shikamaru who spoke first. "My name's Nara Shikamaru," he said clearly, voice betraying nothing. "And these are my comrades—Uchiha Sasuke, Inuzuka Kiba, Hyuuga Hinata and Hyuuga Neji."

Naruto's suddenly frightened eyes strayed behind them, where Gaara stood. Yukito blinked, and then said with a quiet authority, "Everyone leave." Unsurprisingly to every Suna nin there (including Naruto), the children hastened to obey, quickly leaving the training fields. Yukito, however, stayed at Naruto's side, glaring at the people who'd distressed him. "What do you want?" he asked without preamble or façade of friendliness.

Without hesitation, Sasuke said, in the very same tone, "We want Naruto."

--

"What?!" Naruto shouted in alarm, eyes widening even further in fear it hurt his old comrades to see. "What are you saying? I'm not going anywhere!"

"Naruto…" Neji spoke very quietly, voice every bit as impassive as his expression. "You don't belong here."

"What are you saying?" Naruto yelled disbelief in his voice as well as the fear. "No way!" He ran around them suddenly in a wide arc with speed only an elite ninja could have to the Kazekage. He said nothing to the redhead, only stepped behind him, staring at his once-upon-a-time good friends in mistrust and subdued panic. Gaara didn't move away from him, only stood there, arms crossed, eyes daring the envoys from Leaf to take even one step closer.

While they weren't intimidated, they kept their distance anyway; they didn't want to frighten Naruto anymore than they already had—he had a frightened animal look in his eyes, one he wore a lot when he was little before the whole 'dattebayo' motto: they hated to draw it back out, especially after seeing him playing such without care with the other children.

Yukito followed the blonde boy slowly, glaring at Team Nara like he wanted them to shrivel up and die a very, very slow and equally painful death; when he reached Gaara's side, Naruto relaxed ever-so-slightly, and smiled at him.

"I thought I made it clear," Gaara finally spoke now, voice angrily lucid, "that you were not to scare him."

"Don't worry, Naruto," Yukito said loudly enough for Team Nara to hear, yet still with a sincerely reassuring smile. "You aren't going _anywhere._"

---

As they talked, Yukito was told to take Naruto to his room.

When Yukito first arrived in Suna, he'd been dehydrated and half-dead; Naruto was the one who found him, carried him back to the village, and, after getting him to a hospital, sitting by his side every day until he was well enough to leave. And when Yukito was faced with the problem of where to go, Naruto immediately offered a place to stay in the Kazekage's own home.

Gaara didn't really care; he could tell this boy was of no threat, so when Naruto literally went down on bended knee—playfully sincere—he'd merely blinked, and the blonde took that as consent, leaving before the Kage could open his mouth and dragging Yukito with him.

Temari and Kankuro had helped Yukito get settled in an extra room down the hall from their own and across the hall from Naruto's; the first few nights were plagued with nightmares, but he would race across the dark corridor to his blonde savior's room—and the latter would always turn on all the lights, crawling out of bed drowsily and sitting up with him, engaging him in mumbled conversation until he fell asleep, with no sign of impatience or annoyance.

Ever since then, Yukito had stuck to Naruto like glue; rather than irritated, Naruto was intrigued, and allowed a friendship to form: Yukito became his best friend from then on, the first Naruto had ever consciously made.

"It'll be okay, Naruto," Yukito assured Naruto firmly as they sat cross-legged on his bedroom floor, facing each other. "Gaara-san will make sure everything's alright."

"I know, Yuki," Naruto sighed, rubbing the back off his neck. "But it's just…"

"What?" his friend pressed gently.

"Those people seem so familiar…like I've met them somewhere…."

**This is not Yukito/Naruto. Jeez. **

**Um, thanks for reading! This chapter made no sense, it's true, and was a little scrambled—and short—but…I did try. -**.**- I hope you enjoyed it anyway; please review, and no flames!**


	4. Chapter 3

**'Only an author would understand the thrill and trial of starting out with a single word on a fresh sheet of paper...'**

_Chapter Three_

_-_

_Reflection_

The rain fell softly, curtaining the world in a shade of gray and blue. It drummed lightly against the glass, drawing the man's attention away from the book he was reading. He stood, making his way deliberately to the window, and pulled it open. The soft, wet caress of windblown water, misting out across his fevered skin, was more comforting than he had thought. He stood like that for awhile, leaning out the window, face upturned to the sky, when his gaze caught something below; a little boy, rushing through the mild weather. The man's sudden alertness was strange--for he did not know the boy, nor did he have any reason to feel concern for him; but when the boy ran up to a man waiting in the doorway of a house down the street, who greeted and ushered him inside. his faint worry fell away immediately, leaving in its place an aching hurt.

--

_He sighed, shouldering his bag as he walked slowly down the empty street. He was late getting home because of the exams taken at the academy; a few of the students turned their's in last minute, resulting in his extra hour of grading. Now it was dark and raining; while it wasn't exactly a heavy rain, it was cold and the wind blew just enough to sweep fistfuls of water into one's face if they weren't careful. He didn't expect to see anyone out, but surprisingly, as he made to turn the corner, a group of kids--maybe fourteen--hurried past him. He blinked confusedly, staring after them, before turning around to continue on his way; and then he froze. _

_A little orange-clad boy was picking himself up off the ground, a small puddle of diluted blood running into a sewege drain with the rainwater. He dropped his bag and knelt before him, saying with very clear concern, "Are you alright?"_

_The boy raised his face, but wouldn't look at him; Iruka drew in a quick breath: he had three whisker-like scars on each cheek. It had been drilled into him ever since that fateful October night, the Kyuubi no gaki's description; "...and if you forget all that, just remember his whiskers--you are _not _to trust that boy, you hear me Iruka?" He sat back on his heels, drawing away his hands._

_So. This is the creature that killed my parents. This demon is what tore my family apart._

_Before he knew what he was doing, he drew back his arm and hit the child across the face; it was a moment of seething rage, uncontained hatred of the misery he'd lived through the childhood years of his life. And he felt an odd sense of pleasure when the boy fell again, arms limp at his sides, making no move to catch himself before he hit the mud. _

_And without moving from where he lay, he met Iruka's hateful gaze and held it. Iruka tensed, thinking at once that some kind of jutsu was being used; the little boy's stare was so unwaveringly firm it was unnerving. But then the boy turned his eyes away, hiding his face in the mud for a moment as he got his arms and legs under him. Pushing himself first to his knees, he leaned back too far and fell over backwards. Iruka stared without saying a word, crouched motionlessly just a few feet away. _

_The boy picked himself back up again; his blonde hair was wet and streaked with dirt and blood, almost white in the rain. He stood there for a minute, eyes half-shut as he stared at the ground. When nothing happened for a few minutes, his eyes traveled up to bore into Iruka's. "Well? Aren't you going to hit me again?" There was nothing insolent or sarcastic in his tone; he looked expectant and resigned._

_And all of a sudden, hitting him didn't seem like such a satisfying thing anymore._

_"I'm not going to run," the boy whispered quietly, unblinking. "Because I can't. And even if I did--it'd be too much trouble just to be caught and thrown on the ground again. So spare me that much at least and do whatever the hell you feel like you need to do now while I'm near." His eyes narrowed further, this time a spark of anger--the first sign of life, really--working its way into the blue orbs. "Say what you want; beat me until I die. But I'll never apologize to _any _of you, just for being born!" Angry tears sparkled at the corners of his eyes, falling slowly down his cheeks to be mixed with the rain and lost._

_Iruka found himself hesitating; What are you doing?! his common sense screamed at him. This is the Kyuubi that destroyed your family! The one who made your life hell! You've no reason to show any compassion to such a creature!_

_...But would such a feared demon have such sad, lonely blue eyes? Iruka's hands fell limp. The disgust came back, full-force; but this time, directed at himself. He'd just hit a child, who couldn't be older than six. He'd taken out rage for a past event that could never have been this boy's fault; he'd been an infant at the time. And that pain...The boy's soulful, and yet at the same time expressionless gaze held a fear and agony deeper than anything Iruka could have experienced--hated and despised just for breathing the air of the world._

_Those kids...the once that just left..."Did they hurt you?" he asked him softly, trembling._

_And the demon child didn't have to ask; "Yes. Just like everyone else." His stare hardened. "Everyone." His hand strayed to his stomach, clenching the fabric of his shirt in a fist. "Everyone except the Kyuubi. He's kept me alive this far, when all these damn jerks try to kill me every night." _

_Iruka felt this cold, sweeping feeling rush over him; leaving him hollow. So the Nine-Tails was kinder...more compassionate...than he was?_

_A sudden scuff and a subdued gasp made him look up again. The boy had fallen flat on his face after trying to take a step forward, in the direction that would take him away from Iruka. Iruka winced, and moved to help him, but recieved a feirce snarl: "Stay the hell away from me!" The boy's arms shook hard and more blood pulsed down to his fingers from a deep wound in his shoulder; obviously those kids had been playing with kunai and decided to use the Kyuubi no gaki as a target. "Don't touch me!" Despite his bold words, the boy cringed back when Iruka continued to reach for him. _

_"I'm so sorry," he whispered; this shocked the boy into stopping his desperate backwards scrambling to escape Iruka's clutches. Iruka gripped his shoulders and pulled him close, not caring that he'd fallen to his knees in the mud and grime, unaware of the weather worsening around the two of them, or even that his bag was slowly being carried away by the small miniature streams of water running to the sides of the road. He felt the blonde tense and try to claw away, cursing him in several different languages (leaving our dear Iruka quite impressed), but after the first few seconds, he had to choke out his words; turning his head to the side, Iruka saw the bloody child begin to cry, finally sobbing and throwing his arms around the academy teacher._

_He could make out muffled words, so soft he could hardly hear them, and yet cried with despair; "I forgive you...! I forgive you! Just don't leave me!"_

_And all the young man could do was pull him closer and rock him back and forth slowly until he cried himself to sleep, a hand fisted on Iruka's sleeve, the other over his stomach as he curled into Iruka's surprisingly gentle arms._

_-x-_

_The whispers followed them everywhere; ever since that night, Naruto had stuck to Iruka like glue--and Iruka had never thought to distance himself from the boy. In fact, he encouraged their sudden friendship by taking him out for ramen every day during his break from teaching, or showing him scrolls that would help with his fierce desire for strength, or dragging him to his own apartment (much better than Naruto's rundown one; really, was the council out of their minds to order such a small child to live in such a dangerous place?) and ordering him to study the same things that children older than him were learning: Naruto had an odd longing for knowledge--he was interested in everything._

_And nevertheless, despite the cold shoulders and even colder glares, Naruto would trot faithfully at Iruka's side, usually with a hand fisted around the hem of his shirt, so as not to be seperated. He was apparently oblivious to the disgusted looks sent his way; but at once point, when a villager veered too close to Iruka in an obviously harmful gesture, Naruto let go of the young man's shirt and dropped low, thrownig all his weight onto his hands and delivering a low, roundhouse kick to the offending stranger's legs, successfully knocking him into a pile of rubbish._

_"YOU BASTARDS KEEP YOUR HANDS OFF 'IM!" Naruto had howled, looking beyond wrath. "I--!" He paused, right before delivering the expected threat, before silently letting his gaze fall back to the ground as he joined Iruka, lifting a hand to grip the man's shirt again. When they were a safe distance away, Iruka asked him softly, "Why did you stop?"_

_Naruto lifted brilliant blue eyes to him and smiled. And for a moment Iruka was dazed, completely befuddled by such and open and happy gesture by the neglected little boy._

_"'Cause when I become Hokage," he said, clenching a fist. "They'll need to remember who bullied who. Until then I'm gonna train up so that _no one _will ever be able to beat me up again." He looked thrilled at his own words._

_And Iruka stopped walked for a moment, gazing down at the demon child - wondering how so many people could mistake such an angel for such a demon. And wondering also how a kid with nothing to expect from the world was so filled with cheer and dreams bigger than life. He knocked Naruto's hand off his shirt, startling the blonde for a moment, and then put his arm around his shoulder, hugging him close. Naruto grinned again, a cat-like smile that stretched across his face. _

_"You'll see! 'tebayo!"_

---

He half-expected a little orange blur to race down the street any second, screaming, _"I-RU-KA-SEN-SEEEEEI!"_; Naruto couldn't just be gone, that would never happen. The little blonde boy was a major part of Iruka's life; every day, Naruto would appear out of nowhere, tackle him and wrap his arms around his middle, shouting out an enthusiastic salutation--but it was the days he returned from missions Iruka loved the best. Normally, the brunette man would be finished up some paperwork at the academy when the clock would strike a certain time, urging him out of the classroom and into the rest of Konoha, wandering amiably until he found himself at Ichiraku's. And staring down the road in the direction of the gates of Konoha, he would notice first the striking platinum hair of a Jounin sensei, and then the smaller black-haired and pink-haired figures walking beside him; and then his gaze would focus on the blur of blonde raising towards him at top ninja-speed. "I'm back, Iruka-sensei!" the vessel would cheer, throwing himself forward the last few feet, completely trusting that the man would catch him; and of course, Iruka had already stretched out his arms, having expected the dive the minute before Naruto executed it. And Iruka would be blind and deaf to the disdainful mutters and demeaning glares sent their way; instead he would smile and lead the boy into the ramen stall, kind of petting his hair. Sometimes the dark-haired boy from his team--the Uchiha heir--would join them, and during those rare occurrences, Haruno Sakura would sit down as well, dragging a bemused Kakashi along for the ride.

And for the five of them, the males especially, there was never a happier time; for Kakashi, Iruka, Naruto and Sasuke were all orphans--had all grown up without the love of a family. Laughing together (Sasuke usually just kind of either sneered or snickered depending on who said what, and the group could sometimes draw a chuckle or two from the silver-haired Jounin), they'd all--unwittingly and unintentionally--begun to cling to the moments and fill the emptiness of their childhood with the happy memories; better late than never.

Now, Iruka gazed down into the street, no longer aware of the rain. No little Genin was there; no laughing smile, no mop of unruly blonde hair, no signiature eye-smarting orange to be spoken of.

Just an empty road.

And far away, a raven-haired youth was crouched in the windowsill of a small bedroom, watching the two inhabitants--one a blonde, one a brunette--sleeping side-by-side against the wall, heads rested together where they sat.

And for the first time during the whole mission, said youth found himself doubting it; was it really as noble as they all tried to pretend it was? Or were they acting on their own greed, their own selfish desire to bring Naruto back into Konoha--where he belonged--whether he liked it or not?

He stepped inside the room carefully, making his way over to the sleeping children; Naruto looked, especially in his sleep, so much younger than he did when he was awake. When he slept, all his stubborn defiance melted away, all the self-loathing and determination; leaving him with a sleepily innocent expression that could not have so perfectly graced the face of an angel. Sasuke growled lightly, angry at himself, at Naruto, at the world.

But mostly the world.

---

Naruto opened his eyes; the first thing he thought was, _Someone else is here..._He tensed and his eyes flashed up--until they found the dark haired boy who called himself Sasuke. His eyes widened and he stiffened, pressing himself farther against the wall, huddling against Yukito. Sasuke's expression wavered for a moment, before he hissed, "I'm not going to hurt you, usuratonkachi."

Shockingly, that word sparked in Naruto's memory; of a day by a river in the orange glow of a setting sun, with three people he'd never seen before, and they all laughed and smiled with one another, watching the last rays of light fade...

When he blinked out of the memory, Sasuke was watching him with something akin to hope flashing in his elsewise impassive black eyes. "Then why are you here?" he muttered softly; he was frightened--frightened because he wasn't frightened. As soon as he recognized this boy, this Leaf nin, his suspicion died, like his shinobi-senses just turned off--registered him as an ally or, even more unbelievable, a friend. Sasuke saw him trembling and frowned, shoulders drooping a bit as he sighed; apparently he'd not gotten the reaction he'd been wishing for. He strode up to where Nauto clutched at the sleeve of his new Suna friend, and knelt to be on level with him.

"You don't recognize me, do you?" he asked quietly. Their gazes met and locked--Naruto was surprised at the expression he read quite clearly in Sasuke's unreadable eyes. And then Sasuke stood without another word, swept out the window and was gone, leaving Naruto staring after him with a dumbfounded look on his face.

Hours later, when Yukito woke up, he'd find Naruto blinking cutely in confusion, eyes on the open window. "What happened?" he'd ask sleepily, rubbing at his eyes with a fist. "Was someone here?"

"Yeah...Uchiha Sasuke..."

Yukito went rigid. "What the hell did _he _want?"

"I dunno..." Naruto's expression held no fear; just confusion and a little bit of shame. "He never said...He just told me he didn't want to hurt me." Yukito snorted, but Naruto ignored him. "I can't figure out why he looked so sad, though, when he realized I didn't know him..." He scrunched up his face. "More than just sad...

"He looked...dissapointed..."

**I'm sorry that that was so short. -cries- I have Writer's Block! And I'm sorry, also, for how unsatisfying it all was. -**.**- Oh, by the way--this isn't going to be a very long story...just so you know...**

**  
Please review! And don't flame!**


	5. Chapter 4

**I'm so sorry this took so long. I had a HUGE case of Writer's Block. It's still around here somewhere...like a bad cold...-glare left and right-**

**I think it's pointless to add a disclaimer in here; if I owned Naruto, why the feck would I be making fanfictions about it, rather than drawing my ideas into the manga? Jeez. Ask yourselves these questions before you come to **_**me.**_

_Chapter Four_

_-_

_Comrades_

"I'm going to train!"

Yukito barely had time to glance up before the blond was out the door; he blinked after him, then flinched when the door slammed shut. _Jeez, _he though with exasperation, crawling into Naruto's bed, rather than stumbling across the hall to his own; because by the time he got there, he'd be wide awake and restless. So he snuggled into Naruto's pillow, pulling the thin bedsheet up to his chin--_Why is Naruto's room always cold? I mean, everywhere else is hot, but here...it's almost chilly...--_and was prepared to drift back to sleep...

_"We want Naruto."_

His eyes snapped back open, fingers curling into fists around the bedsheets. Those Konoha shinobi...how could he have forgotten? Of course Naruto had been in such a hurry to leave--he wanted to distance himself from them, put as much space between himself and those Leaf-nin as possible. The blond had probably agonized over it all night long; Yukito sighed guiltily, wondering if he should've at least stayed awake until Naruto had fallen asleep...

He wouldn't ever forget that look of fear on his best friend's face. The way his eyes widened, pupils shrinking and, oddly enough, slitting like a cat's would when exposed to bright light; how suddenly the life went out of him, leaving him almost limp and yet still rigid with anxiety. How the light-heartedness seemed to die, bringing down any cheer in the air with it; the way the whisker-scars on each cheek seemed to droop when his smile faded...

Of course, it was all those Konoha-nin's fault.

_Knock knock_

He blinked, sitting up a little. "Naruto, is that you?" _Back already? _However, he must not have heard him, because after a slight pause, the quiet knocking sounded again. Grumbling to himself, he stood, resigning himself to staying awake, and stumbled to the door. Yanking it open, however, his annoyed salutation died on his lips and his expression melted into a careful ninja's blank.

A small brunette was there, twisting her fingers in front of her, gaze flicking from his to the floor quickly; "A-Ah," she said quietly, pupiless eyes huge, voice tentative. "I-I-I'm so sorry if I w-woke you up--!" She bowed hastily, trembling.

Yukito watched her, unyeilding; around her neck was a shinobi headband, plated with the Leaf symbol--he remember her face among the rest of them, the way the sight of her sent his Naruto into panic. He opened his mouth to snarl something at her, but paused; there was nothing remotely harmful about her. She was still awaiting either punishment or forgiveness, making it clear she grew up in a rather no-nonsense household. Yukito shifted uncomfortably, allowing a little irritation to cross his face.

"No, it's alright," he lied blatantly, "I was just getting up anyway." He watched the way a little light came into her eyes; how she looked at him a little differently, not unlike the way she'd look at her comrades; just no where near as strongly...Like the way she looked at Naruto... "What are you doing here?"

"A-Ah, y-yes, umm, I was looking for N-Naruto-kun," she stammered softly, still twining her fingers. "U-Umm, i-if he's not here, c-could you maybe t-tell him that I--O-oh, that is, that Hyuuga Hinata wanted to s-see him?"

It was Yukito's first time meeting a stuttering ninja; he blinked, then frowned--what was she trying to pull? Of course, it was all a gag, trying to get his guard down! _I can't believe I nearly fell for it, _he hissed at himself. He glared at her, and she inhaled sharply, lavendar eyes widening. He drew back an arm, clenched his fist--

Hinata winced when his fist met the wall; "He went to the training fields."

"A-Ah...A-Arigato!" She bowed hastily and then hurried away. Yukito watched her go, eyes narrowing farther. He made his way out of the room, to follow her, but a boy lounging in the doorway the girl had just dissapeared into glanced at him; he had a red triangle on each cheek, and wolfish features, narrowed and slanting eyes, fangs, and there was a small white dog sitting on his head. Both he and the dog stared at him, daring him to make one move after the shy little brunette. Yukito frowned again, then raced down the hall in the opposite direction.

---

"Gaara-sama!" Yukito raced into the room unrepentently, slowing only when he neared the desk. "Gaara-sama..." He got right to the point after a mere moment's hesitation. "Can't you make them _leave?" _

The Kazekage didn't have to ask who the boy meant; nor did he chide him for bursting into his office. He simply stared at him for awhile, sky-blue eyes unblinking and penetrating. When Yukito felt properly abashed and subdued, the redhaired Suna-nin said quietly, "I cannot."

"How come?!" Yukito was outraged. "They're scaring Naruto! That's not fair to him! They said they wanted to take him away, when he obviously belongs _here!" _

Again, a silent stare. After an appropriate silence, Gaara told the squeamish Yukito, "If any harm befell those shinobi, Naruto would grieve. I don't want to see that happen."

"What do you mean, "Naruto would grieve"? I think he'd be pretty damn happy!"

"Those ninja are his most precious people," the redhead said in his soft, yet somehow commanding voice. "He can't let anything happen to them--if anything ever did, he'd blame himself, and never forgive himself for it."

Yukito stared at him, frustrated and incredulous, before he finally sank into a chair at the side of the room. "I don't understand," he said wearily, dropping his face into his palms. "None of this makes any sense, Naruto's never even seen those people before."

"Of course he has," Gaara muttered, still staring unblinkingly at the brunet boy. "You know Naruto's never as untrustful as all that to strangers."

The brown-haired boy paused. Then he argued, "But he didn't trust them, which means--"

"Which means," the Kage cut him off sharply, silencing him efficienty, "they brought up something of the past that his subconscious did not wish to be reminded of. He rejected it, because it felt alien to him. And in doing so, he hurt himself badly--and he thinks that that pain is their fault, which is why he's so afraid of them. Anyone who can cause that kind of hurt must be dangerous."

Yukito seemed to struggle with something for a moment. "Does this have something to do with that Leaf hitai-ate he always wears? He never lets anyone else touch it," the boy said, looking up at the taller shinobi with big eyes. It all seemed to be coming together; strange pieces of a stranger puzzle that had fallen into his lap, putting themselves together no matter how many times he tried to scramble them.

Everything was falling in place.

He didn't like it.

"If you want proof," Gaara said quietly, returning to his paperwork, "simply endanger the life of one of those ninja. Then you'll see."

---

_Why didn't I think of it before?! _Yukito was elated, running quickly down the streets of Suna in the direction of the training fields. _If Naruto cares, he'll stop me; he wouldn't be able to tell I was aiming to miss in the first place! _Yukito's skill with a kunai weren't the best, but his shuriken throwing rivaled Naruto's. _Either way, no one gets hurt._ He was too excited to realize he was being followed carefully by a pair of dark eyes...

---

He peered at them from behind the Academy, choosing not to question why he was spying on his best friend. The blond was sitting cross-legged under the targets for shade, laughing loudly with the softly smiling brunette girl. She had a basket on her lap and moved it between them, blushing cutely and muttering something; when Naruto drew back the covering (with an adorable expression of curiosity) his eyes brightened on the warm pastries nestled there. For one crazy second, Yukito was worried about poison; but then Naruto, being the sweet kid he was, broke the pastry he selected in half and passed a share to her, along with a radiant smile. If it was possible, her blush deepened and she brought the sweet bread to her lips, dropping her gaze and taking a bite to hide the lower half of her face. When she didn't drop dead and die of some horrible substance inside the bun, Yukito let himself relax.

It was the perfect situation...but if _only _it had been one of the _other _Leaf-nin...No way in hell could he even pretend to throw a star at that face. He sat silently for a moment, realizing how difficult his plan was to execute (Yukito wasn't much one for confrontations), and slipped out his shuriken, fiddling with it absently, when someone dropped down in front of him from somewhere much higher. He stifled a gasp, falling backwards.

"Baka," came a very familiar and disconcerting voice. It made Yukito freeze in his attempts to scramble back upright (with what little dignity he managed to preserve), and move his gaze up warily. "What are you doing with that?" He didn't move, but Yukito knew he meant the shrowing star clasped in his hand.

"N...None of your buisness!" the younger brunet shouted, getting his feet underneath him. By this time, of course, Naruto and that Hyuuga girl had made their way over to them; Naruto stood comfortably beside her, and spared Sasuke a single glance in acknowledgement of his presence and a soft smile (for the blond still wasn't sure about the obsidian-eyed, nor with where he stood with said dark-eyed lad), before turning his attention to the Sand-nin who'd been his friend for the length of his stay in Suna. "Yuki? What's the matter?" he asked, slightly concerned.

"Eh? Ah, er, nothing..." _I knew I wasn't cut out for this kind of thing..._He brought the shuriken up to his neck and scratched below his ear with the cold metal absently. The brunette girl was watching him closely out of worry that he might cut himself, and he nearly slipped up and smiled at her. She brushed delicate fingers over her basket, and then offered it to the Suna shinobi timidly. To refuse would have been beyond his control and completely unacceptable; like announcing to a crowd of children he killed puppies in his spare time.

At that instant, a ball bounced past them; three roudy youngsters chased after it, managed to clip Yukito's arm and send the shuriken flying. Hinata's basket tumbled to the ground. Yukito's eyes widened, horrified as crimson stained the dusty ground...And Naruto was nursing his bleeding arm, Sasuke picking himself up out of the dirt where he'd been thrown by the blond in the latter's haste to get him (Sasuke) out of the path of the star.

"Usuratonkachi!" Sasuke snarled, grabbing Naruto's wrist and pulling it out so he could view the extent of Naruto's injury; despite his tone, his hands were quite gentle. Hinata was already taking a jar from her pocket, smearing the cream over the cut after she'd mopped it up with her own jacket. She reached back into her bag and withdrew a long length of bandages, wound tight for convenience. "You're such an idiot, don't you know better than to step in front of a flying shuriken?!"

"Shut the hell up, teme!" Naruto shouted back in a voice Yukito had never heard him use. "You always think you're so great, but look who saved who this time! Just wait till _Sakura-chan _hears about this, she'll--!!...??" He tilted his head at the confounded looks on his teammates' faces. "What did I say?"

**Okay, that was a long time coming and depressingly short. Shorter than normal, and for that I apologize. I did want to get this updated today, though, because in another update I promised I'd allow myself to be lynched if I didn't...So it was out of fear for my own well-being! Er! I mean, out of the respect I hold for all of you reviewers, that I got this updated tonight!**


	6. Epilogue

Epilogue-

_Home is where the heart is._

Opening the windows, he let a cool breeze in; it was raining again. The morning sky was dark and clouded, the dirt washed away and replaced with mud in all the streets. Sighing, he gathered the graded papers and slid them in his vest; then he opened the front door. He wasn't expecting the wind to be so strong; forcing his way outside, the man yanked the door shut hard, locked it and dissapeared in a poof of smoke.

---

_It's so dismal outside, _she thought absently, pulling the brush through her hair with a vacant stare at the mirror. _It seems like its been so long since they left... _Sighing, she set the brush down and lay back on her bed, listening to the the rain _pitter-patter_ against her window.

---

He stacked the bowls just behind the counter, smiling as his daughter trotted in from the rain, tying her hair back and shaking off moisture clinging to her apron. She greeted him with a goodmorning and set out the chopsticks. "It's going to be slow today," she said, gazing out at the village. "We never get customers in the rain."

---

She glanced up when there was a sharp rap on the door; steepling her fingers she called, "You may enter," and the door opened to reveal a silent Sennin. She smiled, sitting back in her chair."What's the news today?" He pocketed his book and his dark eyes lifted to meet hers.

---

He was perched on the monument. Every day he took up his post there, where he could see all, be seen by all. He stared down at the village with expressionless eyes, dark hair wet and blowing in the wind. They had decided to leave for awhile--until he completely remembered. It had been months since anyone from Leaf Village had made contact with him. _Perhaps today, _he thought, and let his mind wander.

---

She beckoned her teammates inside, eager to have them out of the cold and into the relative warmth of the foyer. They took the towels she offered and rubbed themselves dry, glancing out the window. "Pretty nasty out," one of their party said vacantly, accepting a steaming mug. "I don't think anyone would be out there in this weather."

---

He opened the door and found his comrades on his doorstep, both expectantly awaiting admittance in. Loathe to dissapoint them, he pushed the door open wider and let them enter, dryly questioning their presence. "We felt like it," one muttered, jabbing a finger at him. "Spending a day like this alone isn't fun for anyone."

---

"What are you doing here?" was his greeting when his friends wandered inside without previous permission, or forewarning of their visit. One shrugged apologetically, while the other grinned and slung an arm around the disconcerted boy's shoulders. "It felt like a group day," was his excuse, and they decided to go along with it.

---

He ran circles around the flustered man, earning delighted giggles from his female companion and chuckles from the male. A particularly loud clap of thunder shut them up, however, and they were all buried in the man's side, a trembling mass of puppy-dog eyes and whimpers.

---

He sloshed through the mud unrepentently; the rain washed against his face, soaking into his clothes. His eyes were bright against the overall dismal grey of the day, and he grinned, running streamlined through the wind. The lightning illuminated his cat-like shadow, and he paused. Turning his face skyward he whispered, "The rain feels wonderful here." But then he shook off the nostalgia and resumed his dash.

---

_"Are you sure, Naruto?" Yukito asked him softly, brown eyes earnest. "You could always stay. You'll be welcome here with me forever. You know that, right?"_

_Naruto smiled, shutting his eyes and tilting his head. "I know."_

_Yukito's shoulders slumped. "But you're still going to leave, right?"_

_"I have to," came the immediate reply. "It's not fair to Sasuke-teme, or Hinata, Kiba, Shikamaru, Neji...It's not fair to any of them. I got to make new friends while they thought I was dead. And...and Tsunade no baachan and Iruka-sensei are waiting for me, right?" _

_Gaara said quietly, stepping forward, "Naruto will be able to visit you. There will be no rift between Suna and Konoha for as long as I am Kazekage. You may visit him as well, if you get advance clearance from the Hokage and myself."_

_"Yeah! What Gaa-kun said." Naruto trotted over and patted his friend's shoulder. "So it's not like we'll never see each other again"_

I remember.

_How could he possibly have forgotten? _

---

Shading his eyes from the rain, he glanced around, at a loss. _Who to see first? _And then it struck him. Beaming, he ran forward.

---

He slid onto the stool with a sigh, grateful to be out of the wet. Placing his order, he glanced about him; the stall was completely empty. _Another one of those days, _he thought dismally, and then started when the curtains rustled behind him to admit another patron as Ayame said delightedly, "Welcome!"

---

The platinum-haired Jounin sighed, sliding into the seat next to the Chuunin's. The pony-tailed man raised an eyebrow at him. "In the mood for ramen today, Kakashi-sensei?" he asked, half-expecting an answer and half-not. The man only blinked at him for a moment and then smiled behind his mask. "Something about today," was all he said, before ordering his own bowl.

---

She sat up in bed. All of a sudden, she had an odd feeling. Trotting to the door, she happened to glance out the window. Eyes widening a bit in surprise, she hastily raced downstairs, calling, "Back later!" to which her mother responded, "Chotto--ah, be home for dinner." Slipping on her sandals and grabbing her umbrella, she made it out the door on time to catch her passing comrades.

---

"Ah! Good morning," she greeted them breathlessly. "What are you all doing here?"

"We're off to Ichiraku's," TenTen continued, pointing down the street. "We decided we were hungry, and we wanted to eat."

"The good stuff," Chouji specified, patting his stomach.

"Mind if I join you?" she asked them, smiling. "I was feeling hungry myself."

"Of course, Sakura-san!" Lee said at once, earnestly

"Then, we're off," Shikamaru said with a yawn, making no effort to sound enthusiastic. He got a thump on the head and was dragged forward, all the while mumbling "Mendokuse..."

---

"We're anything _but _slow today," Old Man Ichiraku told his daughter when all of Konoha's finest young shinobi ducked inside out of the rain. Ayame made a face at him, and started boiling more water. Iruka smiled when he saw his old students, and Kakashi muttered something about 'no getting rid of the rodent infestation.' They all managed to cram themselves into the seats at the counter and place their orders, sending the ramen makers into high gear.

"Been awhile since we all ate together like this," Kiba commented, stroking Akamaru.

"Yeah," Chouji chuckled. "Usually--" And he stopped.

_Usually we came here with Naruto. Usually he would drag us with him. Usually he would smile that smile and make us all want to hang around him a bit longer. Usually he would ask us to come, not because he thought we might want food, but because of the reason he would never admit to; the soon we left, the sooner he'd be alone. Usually, we'd follow him._

_In a way, we've no one to follow anymore. Usually, we had him._

"Is...Is it raining harder?" Chouji asked randomly, to make up for his abruopt silence.

"I think so," TenTen said, making a face. "I feel like I haven't been dry in weeks."

"Quit complaining," Ino chided her. "At least it's cool outside."

"Yeah. 'Cool,'" came Shikamaru's mutter. "More like freezing. Why am I even _here?"_

"'Cause I got hungry," Chouji said, looking stricken, "and you were gonna make me go get food with _Ino." _Ino smacked him.

Kakashi and Iruka finished their ramen at relatively the same time, just as everyone else was getting theirs. "Gouchisousama deshita," he said quietly, setting down his chopsticks.

"Itadakimasu!" Chouji chirped, breaking apart his chopsticks, and everyone else followed suit; Iruka excused himself from Kakashi, ignored the man's accusing glare ("You're really going to leave me alone with _them?")_, and turned to exit the ramen stall. It was hard enough eating there alone nowadays; hearing all the laughter, and missing that one voice in the midst of all the rest was too much. He pulled back the curtain and took a few steps outside--

--when at the same time, someone else was in a mad rush to enter. The end result was a full-force collision head-long into each other. Being the bigger of the two, Iruka was not the one knocked down. "I'm sorry," he said, trying to sound lightly amused while ignoring the growing pain in his stomach. He heard breathed mutterings as the smaller person regathered himself.

The boy he'd knocked over was on his knees, rubbing mud out of his face with one hand and glaring up at the bigger shinobi with accusing blue eyes, blinking slightly in the rain. "Jeez, Iruka-sensei," he said, attempting standing, all the while conveniently bowing his head so his damp hair shadowed his face, hid his expression. "Knock me over, and I haven't seen you in almost three months. What a way to welcome a guy--"

Iruka yanked him into a hug; mindless of the mud and rain, he was on his knees with his arms around his boy, holding him closely, and saying nothing. Naruto was silent for a moment, before his arms crept up and around the Chuunin as well. "I can't believe it took me so long," the boy said quietly. "I'm so sorry, Iruka-sensei. I should never have forgotten Konoha; this is really where I belong."

In Suna, he was treated as an equal. In the Hidden Village of the Sand, people saw him as one to look up to and admire, respect; not one to beat and scorn. He was regarded highly as a member of their force, as a great ninja worth appreciation. And Gaara was there, always looking out for him. He could have become Kazekage someday, ruled Sand with his acquired shinobi skill. He had a wonderful life, with amazing potential.

But even so, given the choice, he would always choose Konoha. True, it was a less than perfect life, and yes, no one truly appreciated him. And despite how dead-set he was, there was a slight (but not very probable, of course) chance that he never would become Hokage. But that was his dream. His father (Kyuubi told him who his father was years ago; he wasn't as ignorant as most people thought) died protecting the village he was born into; Naruto would give _anything _to live up to the legend the Yondaime set for him.

Not to mention...he had friends in Konoha. Yes, he had friends in Suna also, but he'd been through so much with his comrades, his true friends; he would never trade them in for all the wealth, fame or glory in the world.

They meant more to him than anything else. He would even give up title of Hokage for them, if it really came down to that.

"I'll never leave again, Iruka-sensei, really. Kyuubi's mad as hell as it is. I don't think he'll let me forget anything anymore, 'kay?"

Iruka was unsurprised at the mention of the Fox Demon; Naruto had begun talking about him a lot over the past few years: like, "Kyuubi said that..." or "The bastard-fox thinks..." It was disconcerting at first, but then everyone got used to it.

"I was worried, little idiot," Iruka said, straightening and thumping him on the head. "Any more dissapearances like that, and I'll send Jiraiya after you."

"The hell?! I just said--"

"Oi, who'd you run over?" Kiba asked, sticking his head out of the stall. His mouth fell open and his precarious balance on the stool was lost. Akamaru managed to leap to the bench to prevent the same fate as his master, who was beaming like an idiot through a fresh coating of mud. "Na-Naruto!" He spun around and nearly ripped the curtains down and shouted, "Guys! Guys! Na--Shut the hell up and let me finish, asshole! Naruto's back!"

There was noises of general disbelief, and he yanked the closest person to him (Chouji) off the bench, despite Shikamaru's wary protests. Chouji staggered a bit when Kiba thrust him forward, and his eyes fell on the bemused, and very excited Naruto. "Naruto!" he yelped, rushing forward.

Shikamaru was the next to come out, sauntering forward like he didn't give a damn; but it was clear in the way he slung his arm around the boy's shoulders that that was not the case. Even the untouchables, Neji and Shino, greeted him in their own fashions; a smile (Neji), a nod (Shino). Kiba and Shikamaru had obviously claimed his shoulders, and Kakashi hadn't removed his hand after tousling his angel-blond hair. Even the people who'd gone on the mission to retrieve him from Sand wanted to reach out and touch him, to make sure he was real.

Sakura was the last to come forward. Everyone quieted, glancing at her. Her emerald eyes were full of tears, and she seemed to be struggling to compose herself. Before she could say a word, Naruto tilted his head and smiled affectionately. "Are you going to hit me again, Sakura-chan?" he chirped. Her resolve broke a that moment and she threw her arms around him, burying her face in his shoulder. He was her comrade; the one person in the world she could _always count on. _And he was back.

He looked a little surprised at the gesture, but returned the embrace. He'd lost his old passion for her; the love he felt when he glanced at her was nothing more than platonic, the same as when he looked at his every other comrade. "Hey," he said suddenly, when she glanced up at him. "Where's--"

"Dobe," someone drawled; a quick glance proved Sasuke to be lounging against the ramen stall, staring with his usual apathetic expression at the angel-haired, oceanic-eyed ninja of Konoha.

"Sasuke!" Naruto leapt forward and executed a perfect tackle-glomp, the likes of which his friends had only seen in manga. Sasuke blinked and stared in disbelief at the blond clinging to his midriff. "I owed you is all," he explained, straightening with his serious expression, like he hadn't just attacked his so-called rival. "If it weren't for you, I'd never have remembered home. So thanks, teme." He grinned, teeth flashing in his foxlike smile.

Sasuke sighed, already looking weary. "Okaerinasai, dobe," he said, the corner of his mouth lifting into a crooked smile. "A quiet Konoha is a scary place." Naruto scowled at him, but before he could retort, Tsunade and Jiraiya appeared on the scene, with Shizune and TonTon in tow.

"Tsunade no baachan!" Naruto cried, looking ecstatic. "Ero-sennin!" After rushing to receive their affections, his friends loudly complained that _Sasuke _got a hug, and _Tsunade _got a hug, and _Iruka _got a hug, but _they _didn't; the result of which was a group-glomp--no, Kakashi did not escape. Neither did Sasuke.

When everyone was settling down, Naruto found himself next to Iruka again. "Ne, Iruka-sensei," he asked, glancing expectantly up at him, that gaze penatrating enough for Iruka to suspect some kind of jutsu, "did you miss me?"

Iruka looked astonished. "Of course!"

"Oh..." He smiled. "Okay."

"Why would you even have to ask that?" Iruka pressed on, frowning.

"No one's told me they missed me," Naruto said with a shrug. "I just wondered. I'm glad they were happy when I came back, though."

With a pang, Iruka realized he, in fact, _hadn't _told Naruto he'd been missed. He hadn't _said _anything.

"But that's okay," Naruto continued, quite obviously thinking aloud. "Cause I think that somehow I would've remembered soon enough. I mean, a few things are still hazy, but..." He chuckled. "It'll come back to me eventually."

Kiba punched him hard on the arm. "You're such an idiot," he scoffed. "Do you really think we didn't _miss _you?"

"Hinata _pined _for you," Ino whispered, much to the blushing girl's dismay.

"Leaf just wasn't the same without you around to screw things up," Neji said in his usual superior tone, but Naruto accepted the sentiment for what it was. His time in Sand with Gaara taught him to appreciate unspoken tones of affection; he was still rather impatient, but not as much as he once was. He'd also trained heavily under _Gaara's _tutorage, and was quite the skilled shinobi.

"I know," Naruto nodded earnestly, eager to make things right again, "I'm back with my _nakama _and that's all that matters." He grinned. "But I _am _hungry..."

"I knew that'd be coming!" came the laughter from inside the ramen stall as Ayame dished out a few bowls of pork-flavored ramen while her father beckoned the ninja in with his ladle. "On the house!"

"HELL YEAH!" Naruto bounded inside, followed by his 'nakama', who were all slightly touched at being referred to as such. "If there's _one _thing I knew I was missing, it was this!"

"Usuratonkachi," Sasuke muttered sliding in next to him.

"Baka," Sakura agreed, seating herself on his other side.

And Kakashi placed himself behind them, smiling under his mask. It was good to be whole again.

_We're back with someone to follow._

_Owari_

A/N: Omigawd, shield your eyes from the horrible OOCness! It buuurns! -ducks away- Please don't flame...! It's been fun, guys!

_Itadakimasu- "Let's eat!" _

_Chotto- "Wait"_

_Okaerinasai- "Weclome home"_

_Gouchisousama deshita- "Thank you for the meal, it was delicious" _

_Mendokuse- "Troublesome"_

_Baka- "Idiot"_

_Usuratonkachi- "Ultimate moron" or "outstanding idiot"; Sasuke's pet name for Naruto._

_Nakama- a word used for the best of friends, reserved for comrades with incredible friendship with one another._


End file.
